Tender mercies - week 78

Hello!!

This week was an awesome week, a mission highlight! Lots of spiritual moments, but mostly just filled with tender mercies. I'll try and sum it up as best I can.

First off, I really love working with Elder Stratford. I have just been blessed with some amazing missionary companions. We work great together and he is a focused and diligent missionary with great integrity.

Elder Stratford, me and enchiladas

The week started off great! On Monday, Jason's dad was visiting from 惠州! We were so excited to meet him. Jason is a great rc, and I still remember a year or so ago when we came across him on the street, and remember how his faith helped him overcome his parental opposition. It is amazing how the gospel really blesses families. His dad was great, and had some really good questions. He said even though he had been raised completely not knowing or understanding anything about God, he has seen how much it has blessed and helped his son. He was really appreciative for the church, and even believes that the gospel might be the right path, and he himself would really like to learn more. WOW! We were so happy!! He is going to try to find more time in his schedule to come down to Hong Kong to visit his so son and attend church meetings to learn. It makes me so happy to see the Lord blessing their family. Jason is a powerful pioneer and will bless his family eternally.

Jason's dad

We had a missionary broadcast this week, it was a great broadcast. I learned a lot, it's impossible to summarize all my thoughts really. One thing I did enjoy was Elder Bednar's opening prayer. So powerful. It is a rare opportunity to hear an apostle pray, and pray so specifically on our behalf. I love the focus on the uncountable, rather on the countable. It's like how President Uchtdorf says, all the things you can count don't really count. All the things you can't count, really do count. We can't count conversion and change of heart, it's a good reminder to always be doing the right things for the right reasons, and not just because there is a number attached to it for reports.  I love the focus on the Spirit as the teacher. It reminds me of how hard I prayed and relied on the Spirit for an interview I did a little while ago and how all of my questions and comments were what she needed (because they were from the Spirit). If only every lessons I ever taught were like that, I will work harder to get out of the way and let the real teacher teach.

I loved seeing all the missionaries come through for the broadcast, it makes me so happy to see them all! The mission is doing well right now, I really felt the special spirit and power of all the missionaries gathered together. We sang called to serve and I really was touched, to feel the faith of all those missionaries, and feel their desire to serve and to be taught. I love missionaries!

Missionary friends at MLC

Elder Kim - almost done with his mission :(

At the end of the conferences an couple missionary who I worked with in Macau bore their testimonies as they are both leaving the field, they talked about how the Tagyam family, an older couple who I brought sacrament to in Macau, was going to the Philippines to be endowed and sealed! What a tender mercy to hear that! I am so happy for them and amazed with their progression. Heavenly Father watches over all His children.

On Thursday we had a pretty open day with not too much to do because most of our people are still out of town for the new year, but our day was suddenly packed with blessings! A bunch of members had scheduled a Gospel Lesson on missionary work and temples, but the teacher wasn't able to come, so we last minute taught a bunch of mainland members and youth about preparing for missions and the temple. I don't know if I have ever met with a more teachable group of people, they just desired to learn. Their faith was amazing. Every single one of them is a convert within the past 2-5 years. Their faith in Jesus Christ really was palpable, I was so impressed, they will be excellent missionaries. If only every member had their faith, their would be much less problems, people would never hesitate to do their duties and magnify callings. One of them named Alan really impressed me, he was baptized 4 months ago, he had been doing business with tow men from America who both happened to be members, and he felt something different from them. He said for some reason out of nowhere I thought to ask them what their religious beliefs were. Because he approached them they were able to share a little bit with him, which led him to be baptized. And this week he came to the temple with 500 years worth of family names for the temple, and he has an absolutely shining countenance and testimony. We always have to be living in a way that someone could see us and feel the difference that Alan felt from those two members! 

The group we taught

Mainland baptism

Members from India

We also ran into another member outside the temple who is preparing for a mission and brought her friend to tour the temple. We taught a powerful lesson about our Heavenly Father, and my testimony was strengthened again. And then on the train we were talking to a family from Xi An, and as I pulled out a Book of Mormon, they were like oh you are mormons! I was caught off guard, then they said we toured Salt Lake Temple 4 years ago, we love that church! I was so surprised! They excitedly took the book and said they want to learn more! Heavenly Father always puts people in our paths as long as He can trust that we will reach out and find them.

Our great investigator Livia is progressing amazingly fast, she will definitely be getting baptized in March, if not earlier. Max is doing a great job supporting her, I love seeing them learn together.

There are so many more wonderful experiences from this week, I can't sum them all up! I feel so blessed to be serving in Hong Kong at this amazing time of the church, to be working with so many pioneers, and to be strengthened by the faith, humility, and desire. Heavenly Father can do so much with a willing heart, I really trust that he will continue to guide us in our work for the rest of the mission and our lives as long as we are willing to let him,and are willing to pay the price. I am grateful Christ was willing to pay the ultimate price for all of us. I love being a missionary and love Hong Kong!

Love,

Elder Woolley